Increasing ohm's on coils

[MRVaporizer]

Hello everyone!

I did this pretty interesting experiment on using a set of coils for years.
I own a Digiflavor DROP rda, on which I installed dual "Flat Alien Clapton" coils, each running 0.45ohm's on paper, and when measured, it was 0.21~ ohm's together.

Almost everyone says, when a coil turns black, trash it. But you can also burn the excess gunk, wash them, and reuse them a couple of times!
But what if I were to clean them all the time and vape further?

Well, after around 2 to 3 years of vaping, cleaning, and reusing the same coils, I can finally answer.

The coils are always on some kind of a flavour, even if you didn't drip a flavoured e-liquid. I ran through 20ml of pure sweetener mix juice, you still get a previous flavour, in my case which was chocolate.
The Ohm's over these years increased from 0.21~ to 0.24~ (Measured today).
The coils are always black or dark brown. Never to be cleaned like new. Each drip is full of taste, even after cleaning/burning excess off.

If you have any questions, be sure to ask!

That's all for today!

 

[SupplyDaddy]

Don't know who "almost everyone" is, but they don't hang around the wicking and coiling folks here.
Metals break down, so there is a reason to trash them after a while.

If you're still getting your previous flavor after burn and clean, you missed something. Heavy Double Chocolate user here. It would be noticeable when I switch a tank out for my Berry Crunch, not so noticeable with my Mocha and cream, but still.

You have to account for every nook and cranny in you device, removing the coil, cleaning out and off the grub screws or regular screws, pull off all o-rings and such. Helps when doing a full PCMS to do a full breakdown and clean. Lets you check everything.

Your ohms jumping up .03 isn't really an issue, other than age may be a factor.

But then again, many of us say YMMV for a reason.


Thanks for the info

 

[stols001]

Other than "Why?" (That is a lengthy experiment for sure) then no, no questions.

But, I do appreciate both the experiment and posted feedback so no one else has to do it, ever.

I mean, "WOW!" also but just not sure in what kind of a way.

Anna

 

[PeterKay]

Don't know who "almost everyone" is, but they don't hang around the wicking and coiling folks here.
Metals break down, so there is a reason to trash them after a while.

If you're still getting your previous flavor after burn and clean, you missed something. Heavy Double Chocolate user here. It would be noticeable when I switch a tank out for my Berry Crunch, not so noticeable with my Mocha and cream, but still.

You have to account for every nook and cranny in you device, removing the coil, cleaning out and off the grub screws or regular screws, pull off all o-rings and such. Helps when doing a full PCMS to do a full breakdown and clean. Lets you check everything.

Your ohms jumping up .03 isn't really an issue, other than age may be a factor.

But then again, many of us say YMMV for a reason.


Thanks for the info

I have a question- has anyone you know tried dumping the whole tank for a short time in rubbing alcohol or ethanol, rinsing it with water and drying out to clean it in between the flavors before rewicking? I'm thinking about it not to have to deep clean too often.

Thought about it in relation to cleaning coils: I'm soaking a bunch of factory coils right now in a jar with rubbing alcohol (for nearly a week now), all look pretty clean and cotton became white again. I'm going to rinse them thoroughly tomorrow and then dry them out. I've seen vids online with folks using this method, it's been claimed that you can revive a coil that way 2 or 3 times and get another week out of it every time you do it.

 

[stols001]

Oh, I think we all get like, that "I want to increase the life of my coils" phase. It didn't work out fantastic for me, I mean yeah I got a few more days out of them, but like they would die unpredictably and often. Shortly after that phase, we buy our first RTA/RDA and think "Cool the coils are cheap and I can change them when I like!" and that keeps us busy for a while.....

Not sure how/when/what stage one gets to... this guy. LOL. Maybe it was like, "How much in WIRE could I possibly save or "I really hate changing coils" which I relate to.... But also DO. Because you should.

LOL we were passing some kind of giant tanker truck on our way back from Tucson and the husband gave me a grave exposition on it being a food grade tank and how he could tell it was SS 316 whatever and how many times it was LICENSED to be cleaned and reused before the end of its useful life. I think he was shocked at my ability to somewhat keep up but he knew all the properties of all the dang metals and what they were useful for. Like, on and on he knew. He would be frowning upon this person and this person's coil quite heavily.

I get licensure can be a bad thing but "Food grade" is important, including HOW MANY times you can use ANYTING before it becomes hazardous.

Anna

 

[Mordacai]

Isopropyl Alcohol, Tank Seals and insulators don't play nice. Best not to use them together.

Glass and metal are fine though.

 

[DaveP]

I used to dry burn, but if I have the tank broken down far enough to dry burn, it's just as easy to wind a coil and screw it down. New is better than dry burned, IMO, especially with SS316L.

 

[englishmick]

I rewick my coils 3 times. When a coil has been used for a while the metal degrades. After you dry burn it and give it a brushing it won't come up shiny any more. And you can feel the roughness of the metal with your finger. From my observations they seemed to be healthy enough after 3 changes, but more than that they started to get dodgy. That's with 28g wire at low power. I suspect high power would mess them up faster. Or maybe thicker wire lasts longer.

Years ago someone here (@Rossum ?) took pictures of coils with an electron microscope. You could see all the damage. Tiny flakes of metal coming off the surface of the wire and so forth.

 

[DaveP]

I've used rebuildables for many years. I recoiled some Kanger coil heads a few times and decided it was easier to build with attys designed for recoiling.

 

[MRVaporizer]

Don't know who "almost everyone" is, but they don't hang around the wicking and coiling folks here.
Metals break down, so there is a reason to trash them after a while.

If you're still getting your previous flavor after burn and clean, you missed something. Heavy Double Chocolate user here. It would be noticeable when I switch a tank out for my Berry Crunch, not so noticeable with my Mocha and cream, but still.

You have to account for every nook and cranny in you device, removing the coil, cleaning out and off the grub screws or regular screws, pull off all o-rings and such. Helps when doing a full PCMS to do a full breakdown and clean. Lets you check everything.

Your ohms jumping up .03 isn't really an issue, other than age may be a factor.

But then again, many of us say YMMV for a reason.


Thanks for the info

On the "almost everyone", I really meant our local community for vaping.

Oh, I think we all get like, that "I want to increase the life of my coils" phase. It didn't work out fantastic for me, I mean yeah I got a few more days out of them, but like they would die unpredictably and often. Shortly after that phase, we buy our first RTA/RDA and think "Cool the coils are cheap and I can change them when I like!" and that keeps us busy for a while.....

Not sure how/when/what stage one gets to... this guy. LOL. Maybe it was like, "How much in WIRE could I possibly save or "I really hate changing coils" which I relate to.... But also DO. Because you should.

LOL we were passing some kind of giant tanker truck on our way back from Tucson and the husband gave me a grave exposition on it being a food grade tank and how he could tell it was SS 316 whatever and how many times it was LICENSED to be cleaned and reused before the end of its useful life. I think he was shocked at my ability to somewhat keep up but he knew all the properties of all the dang metals and what they were useful for. Like, on and on he knew. He would be frowning upon this person and this person's coil quite heavily.

I get licensure can be a bad thing but "Food grade" is important, including HOW MANY times you can use ANYTING before it becomes hazardous.

Anna

I don't suggest anyone should use their coils for that long. I don't have a "How much can I save" phase. I rewick and rebuild RDA's/RDTA's/RTA's regulary, and sometimes even regular coils, like SMOK, iJust, Joyetech etc. In the Baltic States SMOK, Horizon and other coils can cost up to 10$ each.

 

[MRVaporizer]

I have a question- has anyone you know tried dumping the whole tank for a short time in rubbing alcohol or ethanol, rinsing it with water and drying out to clean it in between the flavors before rewicking? I'm thinking about it not to have to deep clean too often.

Thought about it in relation to cleaning coils: I'm soaking a bunch of factory coils right now in a jar with rubbing alcohol (for nearly a week now), all look pretty clean and cotton became white again. I'm going to rinse them thoroughly tomorrow and then dry them out. I've seen vids online with folks using this method, it's been claimed that you can revive a coil that way 2 or 3 times and get another week out of it every time you do it.

Yes, but wherever the liquid gets in, it gets out. So refilling the tank a few times would mostly change the flavour fully.

P.S Don't try vinegar. Ruined my O-rings......

 

[MRVaporizer]

I rewick my coils 3 times. When a coil has been used for a while the metal degrades. After you dry burn it and give it a brushing it won't come up shiny any more. And you can feel the roughness of the metal with your finger. From my observations they seemed to be healthy enough after 3 changes, but more than that they started to get dodgy. That's with 28g wire at low power. I suspect high power would mess them up faster. Or maybe thicker wire lasts longer.

Years ago someone here (@Rossum ?) took pictures of coils with an electron microscope. You could see all the damage. Tiny flakes of metal coming off the surface of the wire and so forth.

Well I don't really get the "mess up" part. It's just metal. Of course it won't be so shiny anymore due to the residue.

......What have I gotten myself into.... NEED NEW COILS!

 

[DaveP]

Once the wire begins to feel a little rough during a rewick, I change it. We don't need microscopic flaky metal particles in our lungs.

 

[evan le'garde]

I wonder if coils could be 3D printed.

 

[stols001]

To be fair I have a few setups that need recoiling been meaning to do it but COVID 19. Meh. I should approach it as a fun and interesting challenge but also, meh.

I also accidentally bought freaking.... Non topfill tanks for my topfill doggies. A fair amount are sitting on bottom top fill chimneys, which frankly is the worst of both worlds. Because the stupid chimney never comes off with the tank and then eliquid everywhere you have to vape the dang tank down to zero. I have lots of bottom fill tanks and chimneys I need to dig them out and deal with the mess I am in. Heh. Something about that topfill ring means if you drop them hard they will JUST die on you. Not that I have been having that problem lately. I so should order more topfill tanks if I an find them. The end is nigh, they are cheap, it don't matter when they arrive etc.

Anna

 

[UncLeJunkLe]

I wonder if coils could be 3D printed.

My guess is even if they could be and even if they lasted as long as and performed the same as regular metal coils, the end result would be a more expensive coil, not even counting wear and tear on the printer. But last I checked (quite a few years ago), 3d printing with metal was rather expensive.

 

[Brewdawg1181]

oops

 

[Brewdawg1181]

Well I don't really get the "mess up" part. It's just metal. Of course it won't be so shiny anymore due to the residue.

......What have I gotten myself into.... NEED NEW COILS!

Metal is tough, but not impervious to change, especially when subjected to high heat. As others mentioned, the coil metal breaks down over time.

Per Dr. Farsalinos (Dry-burning metal coils: is it a good thing?)

"Dry-burning the coils means heating them to temperatures well above 700oC (we have both measured temperatures under these conditions). This is expected to have significant effects on the structure of the metal and the bonds between metal atoms. This heat treatment in the present of oxygen will promote coil oxidation, change grain size of the metals/alloy, promote new bonds between metal atoms, etc. To this, we should add the continuous contact of the coil with liquid. The liquids may have corrosive properties on the metals, which could further affect the molecular structure and integrity of the metal. Finally, the vaper is inhaling the aerosol directly from the coil itself. All these factors may contribute to the presence of metals to the aerosol. Most materials that are used in e-cigarette products were not developed for this application. In this specific case, the resistance wires were develop and used as heating elements at high temperatures IF NO VECTOR can transport the metal / oxide particles to the human body. This not means that can be used in vaping in the same way."

I can't even imagine how much the coil has degraded with hundreds of dry fires.

FWIW, I tried cleaning Nautilus bvcs (boiling, alcohol, etc.), and yeah, it was a little better than before cleaning, but not worth it to me. I've tried many times to dry fire and clean ss316 in rta's and it never tasted as sharp and fresh, or lasted as long as a new coil.

I can understand re-using a fancy, expensive coil, but it's not even worth considering for my simple round, spaced coils.

 

[DaveP]

I look at SS316L as a disposable item. $7 for a 100 foot spool isn't going to break me. I just inspect and recoil as needed. If it's not smooth and shiny during a rewick I toss and replace.

 

[Brewdawg1181]

I look at SS316L as a disposable item. $7 for a 100 foot spool isn't going to break me. I just inspect and recoil as needed. If it's not smooth and shiny during a rewick I toss and replace.

Yeah, I don't even inspect. I'm rebuilding every 8 ml or so (NET), and it automatically gets tossed. Even buying 30' rolls, it costs me a little more than a penny per coil.